The Anglican Communion and homosexuality

Recent developments: 2002 to 2005

Recent developments

2002-OCT: Conflict over the new Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams: He is currently the Archbishop of Wales and will be installed as the
new Archbishop of Canterbury in 2003-JAN. Because the UK lacks separation
of church and state, Prime Minister Tony Blair chose Williams from a list
of two submitted by a special commission after months of secret debate.
Queen Elizabeth later approved the appointment formally. A spokesperson
for Tony Blair praised Williams' "wisdom, intellectual stature and deep
spirituality [qualities which would be] invaluable as he seeks to lead the
Anglican church in ever more complex and challenging times". The
spokesperson added: "The government may not always agree with
everything that is said (by senior members of the church) but people are
perfectly at liberty to express their views." Williams has backed a
gradual separation of church and state in England. The Reverend Richard
Kirker, general secretary of the lesbian and gay Christian movement,
welcomed Williams' support for homosexual rights. Kirker said: "Dr
Williams' commitment to justice and dignity for all people including
lesbians and gay men gives us great heart. Under his leadership homophobia
will be challenged and intolerance rooted out."

Some conservative
elements from within the Anglican Community are displeased with the
selection of Williams. Most vocal among the opposition is "Reform",
a conservative Evangelical network of more than 500 clergy and the Rt
Rev Wallace Benn -- suffragan Bishop of Lewes. They said that they would
not welcome Dr. Williams because of his "non-biblical" views. Reform has stated: "Even shortly before the appointment, he
publicly said he is 'not convinced that a homosexual has to be celibate
in every imaginable circumstance'." Williams has admitted ordaining
as a priest a sexually-active homosexual. They have asked him to resign
"for the sake of the Church's gospel witness and unity" unless he
is willing to condemn any and all sexual behavior outside of a one-man,
one-woman marriage. This, of course, would include sexual activity
within a loving, committed gay or lesbian relationship. 3 They have asked that he affirm and defend church teaching:

Rev Richard Kirker, spokesperson for the Lesbian and
Gay Christian Movement said: "The presumptuous self-righteous
tone of Reform simply beggars belief and will, I suspect, make them even
more isolated than they already are in the Anglican Church." 6

2002-OCT-21: Archbishop repeats rejection of blessing
of gay unions: At a meeting on 2002-OCT-21 at the University of Toronto'sWycliffe College, Carey said:
"I want to plead with the {Canadian] House of Bishops to go very carefully, to find a
way that the decision in New Westminster can be overruled....If more and more
dioceses take this approach, it's going to undermine the unity of the Anglican
Communion and I don't know if the Canadian Church can afford to pay the deep
price...Some may have no alternative but to look for spiritual help elsewhere."
Talking later to reporters, he downplayed the importance of this issue. He said:
"This is not a life-or-death issue. This restless, angry, confused world has
such major problems facing it...I'm not absolutist on the issue of
homosexuality. I don't know how anyone can be, but there is so much we don't
know...Maybe with new knowledge, we can wake up to new interpretations." 7 This meeting ocurred at approximately the 50th anniversary of pioneering work by Evelyn Hooker who showed that homosexual orientation was not a mental illness, but merely an alternate sexual orientation for a minority of adults. It was approximately 30 years since the American Psychological Association removed homosexual orientation from its list of mental illnesses.

2003-MAY-27: Primates meet in Brazil: The Anglican primates
who head the 38 Provinces of the Anglican Communion around the world met
in Brazil for a closed-door meeting. They reached a decision that "there is no theological consensus about
same-sex unions. Therefore, we as a body cannot support the
authorization of such rites." The Associated Press reported that the
primates committed to " 'respect the integrity' of the self-governing
national churches and their local dioceses. They also acknowledged
bishops' responsibility to meet 'the pastoral needs of minorities'."
Rev. Michael Hopkins, a American supporter of church blessings for
same-sex unions, said that he thinks that the U.S. Episcopal Church
could approve same-sex rites at its convention later in 2003. He said
that the primates are "preparing the world for it to happen, if it
does." 8

2003-MAY-29: Same-sex unions to be blessed in Canada: Bishop Michael Ingham of the New
Westminster Synod in British Columbia, Canada, authorized six Anglican
parishes to use a special rite to bless same-sex unions. More details.

2003-JUL-7: Gay priest appointed as bishop declines the post: Rev. Jeffrey John, a celibate priest, decided to not to take up his
post. He wrote that he made his decision because of "the damage my
consecration might cause to the unity of the Church." The Archbishop
of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, said the decision should give Anglicans "pause
for thought...This has been a time of open and painful confrontation. We
need now to give ourselves the proper opportunities honestly to think
through what has happened and to find what God has been teaching us."
Several bishops said his appointment violated church teaching that gay
sex is "incompatible with Scripture." They apparently did not
differentiate between sexually active and celibate gays. 9

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2003-JUL-24: Primates and bishops appear ready to split Anglican
Communion: Evangelical Anglicans from all over the world met
recently in Washington DC for a two day meeting. Seven primates and a
number of bishops who represent most of the 75 million members of the
Anglican communion subsequently issued a letter demanding that Canon Gene
Robinson's election as bishop of New Hampshire be rejected by the
Episcopal Church's general convention. This is because Robinson is a gay
male in a committed relationship. If his election is confirmed, then
this group is "prepared to respond." They threaten to convene an
"extraordinary meeting" involving the leaders of most of the
Communion's 38 provinces to deal with a "dramatic realignment." 10More details.

2003-OCT-28: Lambeth Commission on Communion (LCC) created: The Archbishop of Canterbury was appointed to lead a 16-member
commission to report on "understandings of communion" that unite
Anglicans around the world. It is to be led by Archbishop Robin Eames of
Ireland. Addressing a meeting of the Compass Rose Society,
Archbishop Eames said: "We will try under God to provide channels on
communication, channels of understanding, but most of all a path
forward...Please pray for me." He asked that Anglicans
"recognize...what binds us together more than what may divide some of
us." Speaking of the Primates' meeting in London, OCT-15/16, he had said
that "no matter what views they expressed, the bottom line was, let
us remain in Communion." 11

2004-SEP-30: LLC report completed: The Eames Commission has completed its report and has presented it to
the Archbishop of Canterbury.

2004-OCT-18: The Eames Commission Report: The report on the
future of the Anglican Communion, whose formal name is the "Lambeth
Commission on Communion" (LCC) is released to the public. 12

2005-FEB 20: Primates scheduled to meet: The Primates of the
Anglican Communion will meet in Belfast, Northern Ireland to discuss and
make decisions regarding the Eames Commission report. 12

References used:

The following information sources were used to prepare and update the above
essay. The hyperlinks are not necessarily still active today.

George Carey, "Letter to the primates of the Anglican communion,"
ACNS 2037, issued 2000-FEB-20